Never Let Go
by damonkeygirl
Summary: Someone close to Ziva dies, which causes her to have to come to the aid of a friend in danger and grieve all at the same time.
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer: I own nothing except any of my original characters I use.**_

_**Summary: Ziva's past comes back to haunt her after a tragedy occurs.**_

_**

* * *

**_

Israel

Isa Mori was sitting in her house sipping tea while reading the newspaper. She turned the pages reading some stories and not others. Some came across the obituaries and a name stood out to her.

Isa threw the paper down and rushed upstairs. Once in her room she started throwing things into a travel bag at random. Once the bag was full she grabbed it and ran out of the house grabbing a gun on the way out.

* * *

DC

Anthony DiNozzo walked off the elevator and toward his desk. "Hey Ziva." He called out when he noticed the Israeli sitting at her desk. She didn't respond to his greeting. "Ziva?"

"Yes Tony?" She asked rubbing her eyes and appeared startled.

"You okay? Because to be honest you don't look so hot."

"I am fine Tony."

"Were you crying Ziva?"

"Drop it, please, Tony."

"Why Ziva?"

"Am I not allowed to cry Tony?"

"You never seem to cry Ziva."

"First time for everything."

"Yeah, but why?"

Ziva was up next to Tony faster than he could blink. She had her knife out. "Drop it Tony."

"Umm, sure if you drop the knife." Tony tried to back up an inch but Ziva wouldn't let him move. "Ziva, do you mind?"

"Tell me you will drop the subject."

Gibbs entered the bullpen and noticed the scene. He dropped the file he had on his desk and walked over to Ziva. He placed his hands over the one that was holding the knife. "Give me the knife Ziva." The knife dropped into his hand. Ziva was back over to her desk in a flash.

"I am sorry Gibbs, I do not know what came over me." She ran her hands through her hair.

Gibbs came over and handed her the file. "Request approved, you got two weeks."

"Thank you Gibbs." Ziva grabbed her bag and ran to the elevator.

Tony watched the scene unfold in awe. "Wait, she tries to kill and then gets time off?!"

"Be careful what you say around a grieving assassin Tony, they have been known to snap." Gibbs said lightly as he returned to his desk.

"Grieving? Who?" Tony asked.

"Her father, they didn't even tell Ziva until this morning. He died three weeks ago."

* * *

_**TBC…**_

_**Review Please!**_

_**Up next: Ziva in Israel… and an old acquaintance. **_


	2. Chapter 2

McGee walked into the bullpen, late. He rushed over to his desk. "Gibbs is already here Probie, no use rushing. He knows you're late." Tony said.

"Oh, where's Ziva?" McGee asked eyeing her empty desk.

"Oh probably somewhere over the ocean by now." Tony replied vaguely.

"What?" McGee asked, confused.

"She's going to Israel."

"Why?"

"Her father died. She was really out of it this morning. Nearly killed me. Had to fight her off."

"Sure you did Tony." McGee commented.

"I did, she tried to take my head off with a knife."

"I believe that part, what I don't believe is that you fought her off."

"Why would you believe that?"

"Because, Ziva would kick your butt, and you wouldn't be here to talk about it. Oh wait, let me guess, Gibbs got her to back off?"

"I hate you Probie." Tony said in a hurt voice.

McGee smiled and turned to his computer and started working.

Gibbs walked into the bullpen with hi coffee and hit Tony on the back of the head.

"What was that for?" Tony asked.

"For telling stories, instead of working." Gibbs replied.

Tony scowled and turned to his computer.

* * *

Ziva stepped of the airplane and into the airport. She was back in Israel, her home. Only it didn't feel tat way anymore. She had spent so much time away; DC had become her home. And now, with her family gone, this didn't feel like home anymore. Ziva sighed and walked away from the terminal.

She headed over to the cabs so she could go home. When they arrived Ziva thanked the driver and got out and stood in front of her house. She pulled out her key and stepped inside. It was empty, and seemed abandoned. No one had been in it for three weeks, or more.

She threw her stuff down on the couch and only grabbed what she needed: a gun, a cell phone and a pair of sunglasses. She headed back outside and walked to the cemetery, five miles away. When she got there she slowly headed over to where she knew the marker would be.

There were several grouped together. Her brother and sister, her mother. And now her father. Her entire family was under her feet. She ran her hand along the graves. She felt herself start to cry. She wiped the tear from her eye. She shouldn't cry. There was no one left for her. No one to be there for her. To protect her.

A thought hit Ziva. _Isa… Where is Isa?_ Her father had been looking out for Isa every since she was a little child. _She is unprotected. _Ziva took off running back towards her house.

* * *

Ziva grabbed her bag and shook out its contents onto the floor. She put back in it only what she needed. She ran out of the house with her bag and head north.

* * *

– Flashback – (it was simpler to just write stuff in English so… use your imagination)

Ziva and her friend Isa were playing in Ziva's back yard. They were seven years old. Ziva's father appeared and took them back into the house. "What's going on?" Ziva asked.

Her father ignored her and talked to Isa. "Isa, you're going to have to stay with us for a little while."

"Why?" Isa asked.

"I hate to tell you this, but I have to." He sighed. "You family died, early today. I'm sorry Isa."

Isa started to sob. "Wh-what about Gi-Gina?" Isa inquired about her sister.

"I'm sorry Isa." He pulled her into a hug. "Why don't you go up to Ziva's room all right? We'll call you for dinner." Isa ran up the stairs.

Ziva was tempted to follow, but she stayed behind and silently followed her father into the kitchen. She stood in the hallway and listened to the conversation. Her father was talking to her mother, who was cooking dinner. She heard every word.

"What happened?" Ziva's mother asked. She had her the other conversation.

"Her parents were traitors. The information was leaked. So extremist took it in their hands and went to kill them. They killed her sister as well. They may be after Isa now, we need to protect her." Ziva ran away from the door when her father turned around. She darted up the stairs.

* * *

_**TBC…**_

_**Please Review!!**_


	3. Chapter 3

Ziva had been running for almost an hour now. She was approaching her destination. A safe house that only her family and Isa knew about. Or so she hoped. Ziva was running through every possible scenario in her head. She slowed to a walk at the corner and briskly covered the last five blocks.

* * *

Ziva had her hand on her weapon as she walked up the sidewalk. She quickly pulled it out when she saw the front window was broken and he door was ajar. She peered into the door and proceeded weapon out in front of her. She stopped when she got to the kitchen.

Isa was sitting on the floor behind the counter weapon drawn. Isa looked terrible. She had a bunch of cuts and bruises on her face. Her hands were similar. "Isa."

"Ziva, I figured you'd be coming. Never imagined it would take this long though." Isa replied standing up, wincing as she did so.

"I only found out yesterday." She motioned to the couch in the living room. "Let me clean you up."

"First aid kit is in the bathroom." Isa said as she limped over to the couch.

Ziva nodded and ran to get it. She came back and sat on the other end of the couch. She started cleaning up the cuts on Isa's face. She motioned for Isa to continue.

"When I saw you father's name in the obituaries three weeks ago I just knew they'd be coming after me. I grabbed what I needed from my house and left. Then I remembered this place. I thought no one knew about this place, I guess I was wrong."

"No one was supposed to know about it."

"Well, three days ago I heard someone knocking at the door. I knew it couldn't be you; you'd use your key. So I grabbed my gun and before I could take cover anywhere they had broke in. I managed to get a couple shoots off, but they disarmed me. This," She motioned to all her cuts and bruises, "happened when we were fighting hand to hand. I think there were three or four of them."

"What are the chances of them coming back?"

"High, they've already been here twice."

"Twice! Isa you should have left."

"You would never have been able to find me. I was waiting for you. You know plotting and scheming was never my strength. I can fight, not strategize."

"What makes you think I am much better at it then you?"

"I don't know; you just seem to be."

They sat in silence for awhile. Ziva finished bandaging up Isa and sat back on the couch. An hour later they heard a creaking noise. "Shit!" Isa exclaimed jumping up. Ziva followed her into the kitchen pulling out her gun.

There were creaking noises as the men walked into the house. One entered the kitchen. Ziva got a shot of the moment she saw him. That alerted the others to their presence. There were three others that come over, taking cover behind the corner. Isa managed to get one guy in the head. While Ziva got the hand of another. The two remaining men fled out of the house. Ziva got up to check that the others were dead, they were.

She came back into the kitchen and pulled out her cell phone. "What are you doing? They can trace those!" Isa shouted.

"That may be true, but we can not handle this alone. According to you this is the third time this house has been broken into. As much as I hate it, we need help." She hit a few numbers on her phone and put it to her ear.

* * *

_**TBC…**_

_**Review Please!!!**_


	4. Chapter 4

_**Sorry for the delay, I'm not going to give an excuse, because no one cares that much anyway. I knew this wouldn't be a long story, but I was hoping for 600-700 words a chapter. So I fell a little short this time. But after this is more action, meaning more to write, which should mean longer chapters. (I think) Anywho, on with the story.**_

_**

* * *

**_

Tony and Gibbs were working cold cases. McGee and Abby were at a computer forensics conference in Seattle. There wasn't much excitement at headquarters. It was early morning when Gibbs' phone rang. "Gibbs…Ziva?.. Yeah, we'll be there."

Tony looked up when Gibb said Ziva. He waited until he got his cue. '_We'll _be there.' Tony grabbed his stuff and followed Gibbs out of the bullpen without him having to have said a word.

* * *

Tony quizzed what Gibbs knew on their flight, which Gibbs had managed to get last minute, some how. "Why do we need to go to Israel?"

"She said she needs our help." Gibbs replied vaguely.

"But I thought her father died, what does that have to do with this? And why would she-"

"DiNozzo! Why do you assume I have all the answers?"

Tony was stumped; he turned back to the window and fell asleep with his head against the wall.

* * *

"Do you know where we're going?" Tony asked sitting in the passenger seat of the rental car.

"For the last time DiNozzo, yes! I know where we are going." Gibbs answered angrily.

"It's just that we have been driving for a really long time and-"

"DiNozzo! Shut up!"

"Shutting up boss."

* * *

Gibbs pulled the car to a stop two hours later. Tony looked up from the magazine in his hand. "We here?"

"Nope, it's a safe house, we're walking the rest of the way. Don't want to be seen."

"Right." Tony said as he stuffed the magazine back in his bag. He got out of the car and followed Gibbs.

After about ten minutes Gibbs walked up to the door of one of the houses. He slowly eased it open, but didn't step inside. He looked around and set one foot into the house.

As soon as he did Ziva appeared from nowhere and had a knife around his throat before she realized whom it was. She looked around and saw Tony and quickly withdrew the knife. "Oh, sorry Gibbs." She chuckled. "I guess I have been a bit jumpy."

Tony shut the door and headed for the kitchen. Gibbs motioned for Ziva to lead the way. "So what's going on, Ziva?"

"It's a long story."

* * *

After filling Gibbs and Tony in on all the recent happenings Ziva decided to get some rest. Gibbs was chatting quietly with Isa in the kitchen while Tony roamed the house.

Tony explored and found it to be like any normal house, minus a few exceptions. What he had thought was a closet in the main hallway was in fact, full of many different types of weapons.

He found at the end of a hallway another door. He peered inside the room. "Aww shit!"

* * *

_**TBC…**_

_**Please Review!!**_


	5. Chapter 5

"_Aww shit!"_

_

* * *

_

Tony had opened the door of a room on the end of the hallway. Inside the room he saw a mass of wires all tangled and mixed up leading to a detonator and a timer. The clock on the timer said 90 seconds. He glanced upward and saw a wire that had been disturbed above the door. _Open the door; bomb blows up, creative. _Tony thought. He sprinted back to the living room of the house. Ziva was asleep on the couch. He shook her awake. "There's a bomb!" He yelled at her, which cause Gibbs and Isa to come running.

"What?" Gibbs asked.

"There's a bomb, we need to get out!" Tony replied grabbing Ziva's arm and pulling her off the couch.

Gibbs quickly grabbed the bag sitting on the coffee table and sprinted to the door behind Tony and Ziva. Isa was behind him.

They got to the corner of the street before the house blew up behind them. They stopped running and turned around to look at the destruction.

"How come you didn't see this before Ziva?" Gibbs questioned.

"I swept the house!" Ziva yelled. "I would have seen this! But I didn't!"

"You swept every room?" Tony asked.

"Yes Tony! Each and every room! I did not miss a bomb!"

"You sure?"

"Yes I am sure!"

"Did you ever leave the house, was there a time you both were asleep?" Gibbs asked.

"I left the house once. Isa was still there though." Ziva said turning to Isa.

Isa looked down guiltily. "I fell asleep. I'm sorry."

"What now?" Tony asked.

* * *

The four of them walked into Gibbs' house the next day after deciding it would be better to return to DC. Tony plopped down on the couch.

"Will we be safe here?" Isa asked in disbelief.

"Worked in the past." Tony commented.

"Tony, go back to headquarters, she what you can find out." Gibbs ordered.

"About what?" Tony asked hopping up of the couch. Gibbs glared at him. "Anything, right." Tony walked out of the house.

Gibbs headed down to the basement to work on his boat. Ziva and Isa followed and sat on the steps.

* * *

**Short I know, I have lost my interest in this story even though I had it all planned out.**** Anyhow, there will be like one more chapter. Yeah, I know a let down, well I let down myself as well. **


	6. Chapter 6

Gibbs sanded his boat while Isa and Ziva sat silently on the steps watching. It had been like this for a couple hours.

The door upstairs crashed open. Gibbs' head shot up. Ziva and Isa jumped of the steps and down to the floor. "This is not good." Ziva commented.

"Ya think?" Gibbs snapped back. He went over to his workbench and grabbed a gun. Isa and Ziva unholstered theirs.

"We are like fish in a tank." Ziva said.

"Barrel." Gibbs amended.

There were several sets of footsteps that could be heard approaching. Gibbs pulled out his phone. "Tony! We need backup now!" He hung up and threw the phone aside.

Shots rang out hitting numerous spots in the basement. They fired back and managed to hit one man. The shots kept coming, several hit Gibbs' boat, one narrowly missing Ziva's head.

They kept up the rally for about ten minutes.

Ziva was firing when she felt herself being shoved by Isa. She felt her roll off her back when they hit the ground. She didn't have a chance to look because she heard an increasing number of shots, but yet, there weren't as many bullets.

A moment later there was silence. McGee and Tony appeared at the top of the stairs. "It's clear!" Tony called out.

Ziva turned around to Isa on the floor. She kneeled down and felt for a pulse. Tears appeared in her eyes when she found none. She felt Tony's arm wrap around her and she turned and cried into his shirt.

"It'll be okay Ziva, it'll be okay." He murmured. And it was.

* * *

**_Fin_**

**Not even close to what I wanted, but I don't know what happened. If you felt it was a bit of a let down, well so did I. Hope you enjoyed what there was of this story.**

**Please leave a Review!**


End file.
